Shoes Make The Man (Dragonsong) (P)

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

It was was approaching sundown as Archibald Pewett reached the outskirts of Northoak. The small town was isolated, and when people were isolated they were usually gullible as well. The recent shortage of good lumber suppliers had caused the mill town to have a surprisingly successful season, making this was the perfect place for Archibald to make some easy money. Archibald turned around to face his silent, cloaked companion. The golem had never been good company- or company at all, really- but eight years of traveling with it had caused Archibald to become attached to it.  "Alright bozo, lets find you a new pair of shoes," Archibald said. To the unassuming passerby this may sound like a innocent statement, but reality was often more sinister than it let on.  The golem didn't respond to the statement, but it looked in Archibald's direction- which was enough in Archibald's eyes. With a quiet "Follow me" the man and his construct walked towards the center of town.

[DragonSong]

Once again, Tara had found herself in a dead end tavern in a dead end town.

Still, she did her best to make do with what she was given; she was performing quietly near the hearth of the main room of the tavern, lyre on her lap and fingers plucking absently at the strings as she sang softly.

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Grumbling to himself, Archibald walked into the tavern, the golem following closely behind him. This town was too small to be able to con effectively- everybody knew each other. I can't leave now, not when we came all this way." Archibald shook his head. "I. I came all this way. There is no "we" in "me".

That's when he saw the girl singing by the fireplace. She clearly was not from around here- she stuck out like a sore thumb in those fancy clothes. More importantly however, people were giving her their money. "Bingo. Looks like we- I didn't waste a trip." Nudging his golem into a seat, he waited until the young woman had finished her song, then approached her wearing his most charming smile. "That was fantastic! You gotta tell me where you learned to sing like that."

[DragonSong]

Tara started slightly and glanced up at the stranger who'd approached her. Quickly though, her expression settled into a charming smile. "You don't learn talent, sweetheart," she replied with a shrug and a coy tilt of her head. "The lyre took some practice though."

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

Archibald chuckled. "You're too clever by half!" "I need to isolate her. Make sure she doesn't have any friends who will come looking for her." "So, do you play here often?"

[DragonSong]

"No such thing as too clever," she replied quickly. Another tilt of her head, eyes flicking over him calculatingly. "Not often, no. I'm just in town for a day or two. Why?"

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"Ahh, well, this is a bit embarrassing but..."

As he spoke, Archibald eyed the woman from behind his tinted glasses. "She's small, it doesn't look like she's ever been in a fight. If I hit her too hard I might seriously hurt her. It might be better to just subdue her."

"... I've always wanted to learn how to sing" he finished. Quickly, he added "I know that must seem odd for somebody like me, but it's true."

[DragonSong]

"Somebody like you?" Tara quirked an eyebrow. "And just what would that be, exactly?"

[Eckhart_Von_Musel]

"Shit, this girl is more astute than she looks. I need to be careful."

"I'm a traveling salesman," Archibald replied, gesturing to the briefcase he had set down near the golem. "I sell very fashionable shoes to people- at a fair price, too." Smiling, he took a brief glance at the woman's feet. "You look like you could use some new ones."

[DragonSong]

She laughed. "Really? You think insulting my footwear is gonna get you a sale?"